A modern machine (e.g., a fixed and mobile commercial machine, such as a construction machine, fixed engine system, marine-based machine, etc.) typically includes a variety of systems for performing machine operations and for controlling the machine. For example, the machine may include an electronic control unit (ECU), which may control one or more subsystems of the machine.
One type of ECU is an engine control module (ECM), which may control operations of the machine's engine. The ECM may control, for example, the quantity of fuel that is injected into each cylinder per engine cycle, ignition timing, variable valve timing, and operations of other engine components. Furthermore, an ECM may receive instructions specifying performance parameters and/or performance limits of the engine from a machine component called a governor.
In operation, the governor may specify to the ECM limits and/or performance requirements of the engine. The ECM will then, in turn, enforce these limits and requirements during engine operation. For example, the governor may regulate rotational speed of the engine and/or the speed of the machine. Accordingly, the governor might protect the engine from damage due to excessive rotational speed or operating the engine past its recommended performance limits. Moreover, using a governor to limit the machine's speed may help to reduce the risk of damaging the machine or machine components (e.g., excessive tire wear) and/or may avoid causing components to fail entirely.
As established from the foregoing, the governor may regular the performance of an engine to predetermined requirements. However, a user may wish to change the performance parameters set by the governor in order to adjust the machine's operations to desired requirements. These changes may still be within an acceptable range established by the governor. For example, the user may wish to specify settings such as the duty cycle (i.e., the ratio of run time to total cycle time) or the minimum and maximum amount of fuel that is injected per cycle. However, the user may not easily configure the ECM without updating the ECM code and, in many situations, ECM code is written specifically for each engine.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,240,902 B1 (the '902 patent) to Tanaka et al. discloses a drive unit for driving a fuel pump of a vehicle. According to the '902 patent, an ECU controls a fuel injection amount and drives the fuel pump on the basis of control data. However, the '902 patent does not disclose a method or system that allows a user to configure operations of an ECM. Furthermore, the '902 patent does not disclose a method or system that allows the user to configure operations regardless of the engine governor that is being used by the machine to control the engine's performance.
Disclosed embodiments are directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above.